Compensating device for railway-signal-operating apparatus



(No Model.) 2 Sheets8heet 1.

J. W. LATTIG. GOMPENSATING DEVICE FOR RAILWAY SIGNAL OPERATINGAPPARATUS.

Patented June 23', 1896.

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(No Model.)

J; W. LATTIG. GOMPENSATING DEVIGE FOR; RAILWAY SIGNAL OPERATINGAPPARATUS.

No. 562,770. Patented June 23, 1896.

AKBIEW EGHAMN. PNUTOMMQWASHINGWLDQ UNITED STATES PATENT OEEicE.

JACOB \VILLIAM LATTIG, OF SOUTH BETHLEHEM, PENNSYLVANIA.

COMPENSATING DEVICE FOR RAlLWAY-SlGNAL-OPERATlNG APPARATUS.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 562,770, dated June 23,1896.

Application filed October 7, 1895. Serial No. 564,925. (No modehl To allwhom it may concern,-

Be it known that I, JACOB WILLIAM LAT- TIG, of South Bethlehem, in thecounty of Northampton and State of Pennsylvania, have invented a certainnew and useful Improvement in Gompensatin g Devices for Railway-Signal-Operating Apparatus and the Like, of which the following is aspecification.

My invention has relation to devices for compensating for variations inthe length of wire usually employed in manually-operated signalapparatus and which extends between and connects the signal with theoperatinglever. It will first be described in connection with theaccompanying drawings, and will then be more particularly pointed out inthe claims.

Figure 1 is a side elevation of a signal and so much of an interlockingmachine provided with my improvement connected to the signal as neededfor the purpose of explanation. Fig. 2 is an elevation, on enlargedscale, of the compensator proper. Fig. 3 is a section on line 3 3, Fig.2.

The apparatus shown in the drawings is one in which two wires are usedbetween the signal and the operating-lever, the one to pull the signalto danger, the other to pull it to safety. The compensating device isintended to influence and control both wires, and is therefore termed adouble-wire compensator.

A is the stand of an interlocking machine.

B is the signal-operating lever.

G is the casting or frame (secured to the interlocking stand) whichsupports the parts of the compensator.

D is a semaphore-signal.

E E are the two wires or lines of wires leading over suitableguide-pulleys from the operating-stand to the signal-mast, where theyconnect with opposite arms of the centrallypivoted counterweighted leverd, which is connected to the semaphore-blade in the usual way by aconnecting-rod d.

In the casting O and projecting from opposite sides or ends thereof aretwo levers F F, which I will term compensating levers. One end of eachlever is pivoted at a point f to the casting O, and at its outer end isconnected to the operating-lever B by a link or connecting-rod b. Theoperating-lever for this purpose is a double-crank or elbow leverpivoted at its elbow to the stand A, having one of its arms 13 connectedto one compensating lever F and the other and oppositelyprojecting arm13 connected to the other compensating lever F, the arrangement beingsuch that when the operatic g-lever is at either extreme of its strokeone of the compensating levers will be lifted and the other will beturned d own. The object of thus moving the two compensating levers isto lock or unlock, as the case may be, the compensating devicespertaining to the wires which the levers respectively pull on in orderto operate the signal. This will be more fully explained presently.

Each lever at its outer end has a downward extension terminating in aforked or jawed piece f, between the forks or jaws of which is journaledan ordinary grooved wheel f For each compensating lever there isprovided in the casting C a ratchet sprocket wheel G, journaled in thecasting at a point adjoining the inner end of its compensating lever;and upon the casting is pivoted a pawl g for each wheel G, whichnormally engages the ratchet of said wheel and prevents it from turningin a direction to give slack to the wire to which it pertains.

The two wires E E are joined at the operating end by a sprooket chain H,which leads from one wire to the other over the two sets of wheels f andG of the compensating levers, engaging on its way each sprocket-wheel.

At a point between the two compensating levers is the compensatingweight I, which is hung from a jawed arm 23, pivoted on the axle of thegrooved wheel '5', which rests on the sprocket-chain. Under thisarrangement it will be seen that the weight is drawing constantly on thesprocket-chain in a direction to take up slack and to holdtaut both ofthe wires E E", when permitted so to do by the pawls 9. These pawls,however, so long as they engage the sprocket-wheels G, prevent theirrevolution in the direction of the pull for influencing the signal, andconsequently prevent the compensating weight from influencing or givingup slack to the wire at this time. The pawls, however, are at statedperiods disengaged from their ratchets, so as to permit compensation totake place. The

means employed for this purpose are as follows: On. the inner end ofeach compensating lever there is a fingeror projection f which when'thelever is down (or in other words is not pulling on its wire for thepurpose of in fiueneing the signal) meets the pawl pertaining to it andlifts it from the, ratchet of its sprocket-wheel, thus releasing thelatter and permitting it to revolve freely in both directions. Thearrangement is such that the tripping of the pawl will not take placeuntil very nearly the completion of the stroke of the operating-lever;and when the one sprocketwheel is locked against rotation the other isreleased. This is illustrated in Fig. 1, wherein the signal is atdanger, and is there held by the wire E, even if the: semaphore-bladeand the lever d be not counterweighted, so as to tend to normally bringthe blade to that position. In this position the sprocketwheel of thecompensating lever pertaining to wire E is locked against rotation, sothat the operating-lever has a straight pull upon an unyielding wire. Onthe other hand the sprocket-wheel of the other wire, E, (which latter isnow idle,) is unlocked and free to revolve in either direction, thuspermitting complete compensation of wire E to take place. At the sametime,'if the signal is tobe brought to safety, then the moment the opcrating-lever begins its movement, the finger f of the compensatinglever pertaining to wire E is instantly'removed from the pawl which itcontrols, thus permitting the latter to engage again its sprocket-wheeland consequently locking said wheel against movement which will giveslack to Wire E. Thus the operating-lever at once exerts a pull upon thesignal through the thoroughly compensated wire E. WVhen theoperating-lever completes its throw in a direction to put the signal tosafety,the compensating devices of the wire E will in turn be free toact. Thus each wire alternately is compensated, the compensating devicein each case being outside of the line of wire and there being directand positive connection between the operatinglever and the wire (to theexclusion of the compensating means) each time that wire is called intoaction.

The power by which compensation is effected is a weight in theapparatus, as 1 haveillustrated it; but I may substitute a spring for aweight, and in case of a horizontal arrangement of the compensator,instead of a vertical arrangement, such as shown, I should prefer to usethe spring.

It will be noted that, in the apparatus as I have illustrated it, shouldeither of the wires break when exerting pull on the signal, the signal,if at safety, would at once go to danger, or ifalready at danger wouldso remain.

In case a single wire were used-as, for example, only one wire E to pullthe signal to safety, relying on counterweighting of the signal and itslever cl to induce movement of the signal in the other directions-thenthe wire E and its compensating devices could be dispensed with and thecompensating weight could hang from the end of a sprocket-chain attachedto the wire E alone.

I hat I claim herein, and desire to secure by Letters Patent, is-

1. The combination with the operating-1ever and the signal, of theratchet sprocketwheel and the signal controlling chain, a weight or itsspecified equivalent to influence said chain, the pawl normally engagingsaid end of their respective levers; the controllingpawls for saidwheels; the sprocket-chain extending between and connecting thelinewires and passing over the sprocket-wheels and thence over guides atthe outer ends of the compensating levers; the weight or its specifiedequivalent; and means carried by the compensating levers forautomatically tripping or lifting the pawls out of engagement with theirsprocketwheels at the times and in the manner set forth.

3. The combination with the stand and the operating-lever, of thecompensating lever F pivoted at one end to the stand, and connected atthe other end to the operating-lever by the link Z); theantifriction-wheel f at the free end of the lever; the ratchetsprocket-wheel G pivoted to the stand at a point adjoining the axis ofmotion of the compensating lever; the sprocket-chain H and line-wire;the weight or its equivalent attached to the free end of thesprocket-chain; the pawl g; and means for disengaging the pawl from theratchet sprocket-wheel, whenever and so long as the line-wire is out ofaction, as hereinbefore shown and described.

In testimony whereof I have hereunto set my hand this 4th day ofOctober, 1895.

J. XVILLIAM LATTIG.

Vitnesses EDWARD J. MALLoY, J. DAVIS BRODHEAD.

